2025 Audi Q5 And SQ5 First Drive: Not Quite The Audi We Remember

Sorry to report, but once again, Audi just builds nice cars. Now, in the spirit of full disclosure, I must confess my former ownership of a 2001 TT Quattro and 2016 A3 2.0T Quattro. I sold both at the same time to buy a 996-generation Porsche 911 Carrera 4, back before values skyrocketed to stratospheric insanity, but in truth, I still miss my Audis to this day. A couple years later, I sold the 996 to lock in some of that climbing value and bought a Cayenne, essentially the fancy version of Audi's SUVs. But I always wondered about a Q5, and especially that SQ5 with the supercharged V6.

The last few years for Audi are slightly less easily defined, however, as emphasized most clearly by the peculiar decision to makes the odds and evens model numbers indicative of internal-combustion and electric powertrains, respectively. Before then switching the decision up again, almost immediately. From Audi, performance potential and Quattro still remain mandatory—whether gas or electric. 

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But amid the changing landscape, this newest generation of the best-selling Q5 certainly needs to maintain that certain standard, as the company's true cash cow. And sure enough, to show off the new Q5 and SQ5 around the mountains of Aspen, Colorado, a recent media drive program reminded everyone in attendance that Audi just builds nice cars.

The long drive day started out in a new Q5, which instantly dropped me into a familiar mindset thanks a crisp and clean design matched by impeccably comfortable and quiet sense of serenity. Just the first few sections of chunked up Colorado pavement revealed another set of perfectly tuned shock dampers, which Audi widened up to increase the breadth of capability: softer at the softest end and firmer when firmest. Creature comforts make up for much of the Audi experience, but performance aspirations still lurk beneath the surface, too. As such the new Q5 still sports the familiar turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four engine, but with a bit more pep rated at 268 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque.

The SQ5 later in the day promised to up those numbers big time, as the turbo 3.0-liter V6 puts down 362 horsepower and 406 lb-ft. A seven-speed dual-clutch transmission routes those specs on paper through, of course, standard Quattro all-wheel drive. And yet, from an Audi enthusiast's standpoint, a revised steering system is undeniably the biggest news for the Q5 and SQ5 alike. 

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As I learned while testing a Euro-spec S5 last year in France, a new progressive rate steering box with progressive assist accentuates physically stiffer components for the front subframe and suspension bushings. The same setup now trickles up to Q5 and SQ5 siblings, where the tighter suspension links and even damper tuning that takes steering input into play all result in far more feedback than on any Audi, perhaps ever before.

The steering weight increases marginally, resisting initial turn-in more similar to lightweight sports cars, but the detail and granularity of each additional degree then gives way to a more spirited return to center while lining back out onto a straightaway. No, I'm not talking Porsche, Ferrari, or even Lucid levels of EPAS, but at least the vague and feathery sensation from previous generations has fallen by the wayside.

The whole package truly came together once I hopped into an SQ5 for a romp over Independence Pass and Cottonwood Pass, both spectacular roads that approach 12,000 feet of elevation. A bit of inclement weather—as the saying goes, if you don't like the weather in Colorado, just wait ten minutes—only enhanced my renewed appreciation for Quattro grip. 

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Tires protesting, despite the SQ5's relatively svelte 4,464-pound curb weight, every tightening corner only revealed a perfect amount of chassis roll, as the right amount of power kept me from too far exceeding sane and legal speeds between the switchbacks.

In fact, I almost wanted less grip—as we learned blasting the Q5 on smaller wheels and taller tires down a long stretch of roughly graded road. Though not quite at rallycross status, in Offroad Plus mode at the suspension's highest heights and the lowest lows of ESC, the Q5 still resisted any slides at all on drier portions of the dirt. I kept pushing, blipping through gears using tiny plastic shift paddles on the steering wheel, and yet only once the rain truly started coming down did the tail end ever start stepping out.

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A few other cons for the new Q5 and SQ5 stood out over the course of the day: most critically, a hefty dose of piano black center console that clashes with the wood grain and textural leathers, plus plenty of overly technologized intrusion. The passenger screen on these fully loaded Prestige cars, which can at least polarize to prevent the driver from distraction due to YouTube and games, seems entirely unnecessary. 

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At least the "Hey Audi" voice recognition function can turn off and stick strictly to button-mashing on the steering wheel. And the same for the aggressive lane-keep assist, which turns off along with the rest of the ADAS by holding a button for four seconds. Easy! Just be careful to mind the tires, especially while rally driving, since runflats replace a spare.

By the end of the day, as I enjoyed the afternoon's snowfall at the top of Independence Pass, I started to wonder about those power ratings. For normal driving, the Q5's 2.0-liter needed to rev up into boost to even approach any impression of thrust. In stop-and-go or low-speed situations, I almost wanted to downshift just to reduce the throttle lag between tip-in and actual movement. The V6 at least improves instantaneous response, but also provides more shove at higher revs and even some occasionally liftoff overrun burble and bang. 

Still, likely impacted by the reduced oxygen at such stratospheric elevations, I found both the Q5 and SQ5 wanting for more low-end torque and high-end horsepower alike. Of course, such altitudes would wreak havoc on any internal-combustion car, but I began to wonder if Audi's decision to keep mild-hybrid assist for the European market might cause slightly less refinement for the gas-only models here in the United States.

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Plus, I just miss the supercharged V6—a sweet and unusual powerplant from previous years. But of course, the twin-turbo V6 sure helps with fuel economy, achieving 19 MPG city, 26 highway, and 22 combined versus the supercharged generation's 17 city, 24 highway, and 19 combined (despite making less power and significantly less torque). For comparison, the 220-pound lighter Q5 can manage 22 city, 30 highway, and 25 combined—but that MPG comes at the cost of noticeably reduced output that appears to put more emphasis on the seven-speed S-tronic DSG than anything else.

And then, finally, by the end of seven-plus hours of seat time, my mind turned to pondering the pricing. My Q5 equipped with the Prestige Package, 18-inch wheels, and Tambora Gray metallic paint ran up to $63,290—not an insignificant, and yet not a gobsmacking, step up from the base MSRP of $52,200. 

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The SQ5 Prestige with 21-inchers and all the goodies stepped up to $74,740—again, not a surprising hit compared to the $64,800 base price. And yet, the weirdest part about this generation exacerbates every last dollar and cent: peculiar and decidedly un-Audi exterior styling.

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From the front grille to the side profile and panel strafes, all the way back to the rear light bar, the overall design looks more VW than Audi, to my eye. As if the Q5 of old never needed any differentiation from the influence of a Taos or even an ID.4 EV. 

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Suffice to say, the lines and presence look a long ways off the simple, unique substance of my old TT, or even around 2016, the slightly more angular A3 that likely initiated the last few years of the old-school aesthetic before so much of the simultaneously angular and aerodynamic swoops entered the chat. Inspiration from Kia/Hyundai, BMW, and maybe even a bit of Ford all seem apparent depending on the viewing angle.

The new generation then lacks both the classic executive presence of previous Q5 and SQ5 designs, but also the more aggressive futuristic aesthetic of the RS e-tron GT. It's especially the case for the SQ5, which looks almost indistinguishable from the lower-spec models other than quad exhaust tips, dark trim, a choice of larger wheels, and subtle S badging. That might make sense if Audi planned to save the hardcore details for an RS variant but, for now, none looks likely. As usual, I wound up limited to making a case for the base Q5 with as few options as possible. I don't need more screens or bigger wheels, I just want ventilated seats and CarPlay, really. 

Or, maybe, a base SQ5, just to get that power bump and slightly more bolstered front buckets. Only a top-spec SQ5 Prestige increasingly seems hard to justify. Sure, massaging seats helped my back after a long day in the saddle, and air springs with four levels of ride height sound quite nice, plus bump the roof rail load rating up to 165 pounds. 

But tacking more and more creature comforts onto even a Q5, much less an SQ5, easily starts to venture into Porsche Macan territory—even Macan S, a better if similar car with more power and more panache. One with more striking looks, too, at least to me. And maybe that delta is exactly why Volkswagen Group once again decided against offering an RS Q5 in the first place.